According to research carried out by NordVPNa company specializing in cybersecurity famous above all for its service VPNthe Europens should commit an entire working week per month to read all the privacy policies they visit every 30 days.
Specifically, the study in question examined the information of 20 of the websites most visited among 19 countrieswhich include, in addition to Europe, Spain, France and Germany.
In the context of our country, NordVPN’s estimate identified a necessary time equal to 47,5 ore in order to be fully aware of the data processing of 96 websites most commonly visited by Europen users.
These data are the result of a rather simple calculation: on average, a privacy policy in Europe is made up of 7.068 parolewith a time required to read about 24 minutes.
Privacy Policy: Meta offers the longest documentation
About this study, he also expressed himself Adrianus WarmenhovenNordVPN cyber security expert “Even though we continue to remind users to read privacy policies, one in three Europens does not consult any legal information online. Contextualizing this data in a broader framework, however, it is an understandable behavior. In fact, we should dedicate a quarter of our monthly working hours to read this information on all the sites we visit. With a minimum salary, you could earn around 332 euros in the same amount of time“.
Adrianus Warmenhoven then specified how “On the other hand, reading a privacy policy is just as important as having one. That’s why online companies should do more to create short, easy-to-understand privacy policies. And at the same time, users should only choose trustworthy sites and know what information to look for within these privacy policies“.
For statistics and research enthusiasts, this study has highlighted other interesting data. For example, sites that are part of Meta (come Facebook e Instagram) present the longest information to read. Contrary to these, X presents a more “sparse” documentation, but still made up of well 4.175 parole.
Data in hand Germania has the longest privacy policies. EU countrieswhich demand specific rules so that sites and services can work within its borders.
Information and privacy: what to pay attention to?
Reading this type of documentation in its entirety takes a lot of time, but it also avoids unpleasant surprises. According to Adrianus Warmenhoven, in these contexts often characterized by reading without particular concentration, it is good to focus on some specific and essential factors.
It is essential, for example, to understand what types of data are collected. In this context, it is good to evaluate whether the platform/site goes beyond what is useful for its functioning.
There are also obvious warning signs, which should be looked for carefully in the documentation. For example, in some cases we speak of “sale” of the data collected. Other keywords like “partner” o “affiliates“, although not dangerous in themselves, deserve the visitor’s attention. Terms like “could be” o “for example” should also be intended, as should phrases similar to “could sell the data“.
Finally, choose reliable sites turns out to be essential. The fewer platforms a person interacts with, the less information there is at risk. Avoiding untrustworthy-looking sites, especially if they don’t have a privacy policy, is a wise practice, to say the least.